On July 5, Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a reported missing person call in the 11700 of Dusty Trail, Coyote Springs, near Prescott Valley.

The Coyote Springs neighborhood is located north of 89A adjacent to Prescott Valley. An acquaintance of 48-year-old Terry Zane Ferrell told deputies Ferrell walked away from his Dusty Trail residence on the morning of July 3.

Ferrell is 5 feet 9 inches tall, approximately 160 pounds, blue eyes, blonde hair with evident balding on the back of his head, and facial hair in a “Fu Manchu” style. No clothing description is available other than he occasionally wears a tan baseball cap. Ferrell likes to camp in the Perkinsville and Coyote Springs outback areas. Ferrell’s vehicle/cell phone was left behind. He left no indication as to his reason for leaving.

Since the original call, YCSO Forest Patrol deputies have searched wilderness and camping areas outside of Coyote Springs without success. Several aerial flyovers have also been conducted. It is possible Ferrell could have been picked up in a vehicle while he was on foot, so deputies are requesting anyone who may have had contact with him to please call YCSO immediately. Deputies have been in communication with friends and family out of state.

YCSO is confirming information that Ferrell likely possesses a handgun and is in a despondent mental state. This knowledge precluded the initial use of unarmed search and rescue volunteers in our effort to locate Ferrell. Forest Patrol deputies have been involved in the effort to find Ferrell since July 7.

A factor that has made the search effort more difficult was the two day notification delay to YCSO reporting Ferrell missing, thus making his trail 48 hours old.

On July 13, YCSO authorized the use of 3 volunteer quad teams under the supervision of armed deputies to conduct a search effort from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. They covered the wilderness area north of Ferrell’s home to Mingus Mountain. Ferrell was not found.